1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a block connector constituted by stacking a plurality of housings together.
2. Related Art
One known conventional block connector is shown in FIG. 8. This block connector is constituted by stacking three connector housings a one upon another, and a rear half of an upper side of each housing a is open so that wires can be press-connected respectively to metal terminals (not shown) mounted in the housing. The upper one of any two adjacent housings a has retaining piece portions b projecting downwardly respectively from front and rear end portions of each of opposite side surfaces thereof, while the lower housing a has retaining projections c corresponding respectively to the retaining piece portions b. When the housings a are stacked together, each retaining piece portion c is elastically engaged with the associated retaining projection c of the lower-side housing a, so that the housings a are connected together to be assembled into the block connector of an integrated construction.
In the conventional block connector, the lock portions, formed on the housings a for holding the adjacent housings a in a mutually-connected condition, are exposed to the outer surfaces of the housing a, and therefore for example, when the block connector is caused to strike against other member, there is a possibility that the retaining piece portion b is deformed or damaged, and another problem is that since the projected portions are formed on the side surfaces of the connector, the connector has an increased width.